Constantin Stavropoulos

Born in 1905 in Athens, Greece, Constantin Stavropoulos was educated at the University of Athens and the London School of Economics. After the completion of his law degree, Stavropoulos held a series of jobs in private legal practice and government, beginning a career with the Greek foreign ministry in 1941. His first assignment was as a legal adviser in the Greek embassy in London, but Stavropoulos was quickly reassigned to the United Nations at the conclusion of the war. Rising quickly through the ranks at the UN, Stavropoulos served as the organization's chief legal counsel from 1955 through 1974. Returning to Greece that same year, Stavropoulos reentered politics and served as both a member of Parliament and an ambassador-at-large, eventually retiring to his native Athens.